Crossing the floor

There is lot of confusion regarding the question of my crossing the floor to the Conservative Party after my election. I have received some very good press coverage from the Sherwood Park News, which I really appreciate, however the headline in last week’s paper has just added to this confusion. It seems some people read just the headline without reading the article.

To clarify my position I have outlined three key points on this issue:

1) An offer would have to come from the Conservative Party. I would not initiate any dialogue in this regard.

2) The offer would have to include something of significant benefit to my riding. I believe I can be a stronger voice for my riding as an independent than I could as a back bencher.

3) If I did receive an offer from the Conservative Party I would not make the decision without consulting my constituents. As I stated in the newspaper article last week, I would seek a vote by my constituents to determine your wishes and act accordingly. With the opportunities that exist on the internet it would be easy and cost effective to determine the consensus of my voters.

So, no I would not automatically be crossing the floor. I hope this clarifies my answer and if anyone would like to discuss this further I would welcome the opportunity to talk to you at my campaign office.

Jim

Welcome

I am really excited about initiating my blog. This is such a great communication tool. It allows me to express my views, keep people up to date with my activities as well as getting your feedback.

Please do give me your feedback! In case you have stumbled upon my blog without knowing who I am or what's going on in my life, let me set the record straight. I am an independent candidate in the Canadian federal election in Edmonton-Sherwood Park. As many of you will no doubt be aware, there is a whole issue around my being an "independent" candidate but that's a topic for another day. For today what I want you all to know is that I do want to know what you are thinking. What are your key issues? What do you think of me as a candidate? What do you want me to do for you when I am in Ottawa? You can start giving me information by completing the pole included in today's blog. I also invite you to post comments to stimulate discussion from other readers.

Thanks for reading my blog on day one and I hope you check back often.

Jim